Roses Are Red
by Hikari Takaishi
Summary: Well, Hikari's life is doing just great in her home town... until something unexpected happens and strands her in a whole new country... She stumbles onto this town with a case of amnesia, too. What'll happen to her in this new town--new country? Of cours


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Roses Are Red

_Imagine you become entrapped in a world you never knew. You don't remember your past, you don't remember your friends, you don't remember anything. All you know is that you have stumbled onto a strange city… alone… and scared… and unsure of what happened. Can you imagine yourself being lost in the fields of people that you don't recognize? Could you imagine a place where a stranger can become your best friend? Could you imagine having to start all over in a whole new town, new friends, new memory?_

Could you even dare to think of such a thing?

Yagami Hikari walked down the streets of her town, her book bag over her shoulders, a smile across her face. Nothing could have ruined her day. She had just gotten through with the first week of school; she and her friends had won free cans of pop for winning the contest held at school. Sure, they could have bought themselves the refreshments, but it feels better when you walk into a store knowing that you can get something for free because you won a contest. And most of all, her best friend, Motomiya Daisuke, found himself the girl of his dreams… The name of such a goddess slipped her mind at the moment, but she remembered the girl wearing glasses.

Shrugging, she placed the bottled drink up to her face. The cool feel against her warm cheek relaxed her. September was one of those months were it was still warm, but not hot as that of an August day. She uncapped the bottle and brought it to her lips, taking a brief sip of her cola. It cooled her throat and she thought of the beach waves, splashing onto the beach for some reason. Her eyes shut as she took another drink, the beverage draining into her mouth and down her throat. When she was refreshed, she placed the cap back on and sighed happily.

Two weeks into the school year and she already knew things were going to be just fine. Her senior year was kicking of to a great start; her cheerleading group accepted her gladly, and she was also able to join in the newspaper! She loved photography… She could capture the very essence of the scenery with just one simple click of the camera. Whatever she photographed was near perfection. Her absolute dream was to go to the Roman lands. Once before in school, she had heard of all the coliseums that still lingered in that area. It was her dream to see the sights.

Entrapped in her fantasies, Hikari wandered down the streets in the dark, the streetlights shining down on the corners of a few streets. Someday, she would live in a two-story house, her bedroom would face the ocean and every time she would awaken, it was to the sea. In her mind, she painted her baby's bedroom, pastel colored wallpaper, possibly of cats--she loved cats. The crib would be sturdy and painted white. Within it, the baby would sleep, wrapped in his or her little blanket, dreaming his or her little dreams, clinging to his or her teddy bear.

She wanted a balcony that faced the ocean. A table and matching chairs, as well. The balcony would overlook the ocean, able to see the horizon, to watch the sunset. In her mind, she dreamed of her handsome husband, holding her in his arms while she held their little baby. Together they would raise a family in the quaint little home with bed sheets of gentle cloth… like a silk of some kind. Together they would raise their child, or children, supplying them with the best. 

And throughout those years, she would be taking pictures of her lovely family. If she tried really hard, she could picture the face of her dream-husband. She giggled when she tried to piece him together. She wanted blue eyes… Blue eyes so that she could stare into them and think of the sky… or the ocean.

Hikari trotted down the sidewalk swinging what was left of her drink around in the bottle. Her childish dreams always made her happy. She had always imagined her future… always changed it somehow. Echoing steps filled the night sky; the moon was looking down at the city, shining its dim light over the darkness. She stopped once because she though she heard someone else's footsteps. Shrugging the feeling off, she turned to take a step into the city alleyways. It was one of the shorter ways to get home.

Her first step into the alley and she knew something was wrong. These alleys were dark, sure, but they had never been _this_ dark. Turning on her heels, she began to walk back out of the alley, but something was blocking her way out. This something was tall and shadowed… and tall. Hikari took a step back and bumped into another one of the 'something's. Again, she wheeled around and stared up into the shadows.

Just as she was about to scream, a heavy blow was pitched to her head, immediately knocking her unconscious. The last thing she ever remembered was falling into the arms of one of the people.

Hikari heard the sound of laughter and conversation. It hurt her head. But she couldn't figure out why. Her eyes blinked open and focused in all the light. First slumped over the table in front of her, she sat up straight and looked around. Everyone around her seemed… different. She didn't know who they were. Come to think of it, she didn't think the little restaurant she was in seemed very familiar. Her hands trembled of fear on her lap and she looked from left to right.

A waitress wandered by and the girl stopped her. "Miss? Um… how did I get here?" she asked, "was anyone with me? Where am I?"

"Honey, did you bump your head?" the waitress rolled her eyes and walked away. The girl was disappointed. 

Her hands found the strap of her backpack and trailed down to the open pouch. Looking down, she started to rummage through the bag, looking for any sign of familiarity. There was a binder and a couple of books. A few extra things like a water bottle and a necklace that read _Hikari_. She lifted it into her hands and examined the gold lettering and chain.

"I wonder who Hikari is," she whispered and glanced around. She shifted in the booth and pulled out the binder, setting it on the table and pulled on the Velcro tab, opening it with ease. There was a sheet of loose notebook paper that slipped from its spot and she lifted it into her hands. 

_Dear Hikari,_

I just wanted to write you because math class was boring. Thanks for helping me on my homework, I understand it now. But what I don't understand is the squaring junk. But that's okay. You did a great job. Miyako said she had a tough time in Mr. F's class too last year. She's graduated already. She told me that when you first get your hands on that diploma, you feel like you finally got an A in his class. (She didn't do so well in the class either. At least I'm getting a C.) Hey, do you want to go out to the beach tonight? Miyako said that she could spare another hotdog. (I told her I wouldn't go unless you said it was okay. I don't want to leave a best friend behind. Yeah, I learned from that one day.) So how about it? Talk to you at lunch.

Daisuke

She raised her eyebrow and set the note back down. Her fingers lifted a small flap on the left pocket of the binder and pulled out a great amount of pictures. Some were the traditional school photographs; the others were of natural shots, seemingly taken by an every day camera. She looked at a picture with a brunette girl wrapping her arms around a brunette boy. They both had their eyes on the camera and both had their arms entwined around each other. On the back of the picture, it read in purple ink _Hikari and Daisuke: Best Friends Forever_. 

Placing the pictures back, she removed a small mirror from the same pocket and glanced at herself. Her eyes focused on a pair of gentle eyes and stared at it for a while. The small mirror reflected her pale face and her light brown hair. She gasped a little bit and took the picture of a 'Hikari and Daisuke' out and looked at it. It took her a long moment to comprehend that she was indeed this Hikari girl. 

Overwhelmed, she slammed the notebook shut and shoved it back in the bag. She clasped her hands around the bag and felt another lump in the front pocket. Raising her eyes from the table, she curiously opened the front pocket and pulled out two types of cameras, one digital, one Polaroid. After zipping the backpack up, she stood from her seat and bewilderedly exited the restaurant.

The outside air was warm and it made her skin feel clammy hastily. There were groups of teenagers, near her age, walking around, laughing with others. Older people owned the streets in cars, driving down the road only to stop and honk at those who were slower than they were. She cringed at the noise and felt her head pound from the heat and the noise. How could anyone live in such a crowded place?

Her eyes scanned the roads, full of unfamiliar signs, unfamiliar faces. The building structures didn't bring a clue into her mind and as she walked down the streets, still in her school uniform, she began to wonder where she was. Some boys walked by her and stopped to take a look. She eyed them and wondered what they found so interesting, then continued down the street. 

Her hands gripped the backpack strap. Walking down the sidewalk, she realized that something wasn't right. First of all, she didn't even know where she was. Second, she hadn't known _who_ she was until those photographs in the notebook. And she didn't see any familiar people through the groups that she had seen. 

"Pennsylvania Avenue?" she read the street sign and looked down the streets. "Where _am_ I?"

Was it possible that she had lost her memory…?

"Sara! Is that you, Sara?"

Hikari kept moving down the street until she felt a heavy hand clamp down on her shoulder. She jumped up and screamed, the fear chilling her hot body. When she turned around, an old woman was standing there, wide-eyed and blinking at her.

"Ma'am… you scared me," she whispered, her hand resting over her chest, over her heart. It was racing a mile a minute.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else." The elderly woman sighed. "For a moment, I could have sworn you were my little Sara."

_Sara… What kind of a name is that?_ Hikari smiled gently. "I'm sorry for the mistake."

"You seem lost, dear," the woman kept talking to her.

"I… well… I don't know where I am."

"So you're lost?"

"I… guess."

"Well, there's the information building just three blocks down and to the left. Just walk a few more blocks and you'll see the building with 'Information' written somewhere on it. I think… Or was that to the right? Oh, bother," the woman frowned. "Let me take you, dear."

"Um…" Hikari trailed her eyes away.

"Don't worry," she smiled a wrinkly smile, "I'm Ami Brothers. I work for the church just a while down. What's your name?"

_Does everyone have strange names here?_ "Yagami Hikari." She stood silent for a while. _I think._

"Well, Yagami…"

"Hikari."

"But you said--oh, never mind." The Ami woman walked down the sidewalk and turned back to Hikari, motioning her to follow.

"Honey, point out on the map where you live." Ami showed her a large map. The title of it was called _Washington_.

"Um…" Hikari studied the map. Nothing looked recognizable. 

"Well?"

"I'm trying."

"Did you forget where you live?"

The girl's cheeks turned red. "I don't even know why I'm here."

Ami glanced at the girl and at the map, then at the girl. "Hun, you act like you lost your memory."

"Can that happen?"

"Why, sure it could."

"How can you tell?"

"Who's your mom and pop?"

She closed her eyes and thought about it for a long time. Two faint faces seemed to be in the back of her mind, but she couldn't figure out the names. "Mr. and Mrs. Yagami?"

"You poor thing-"

Hikari's mind began to spin. The heat, the confusion, the thought of being lost… it was too much for her. She clamped her hands over her ears and felt a sickening pain in the gut of her stomach. Lurching forward, Hikari made a small grunt then fell towards the ground.

A sound of violin music filled the empty mind of Hikari. She opened her eyes, thinking she fell asleep in an elevator and had a bad dream. Instead, a flame danced within a fireplace. There were no lights other than the fire and a cup of water was in front of her on the little coffee table. The coasters were a lavender color, with blue flowers and green stems. 

Sitting up, she took a look around. She was on a soft couch, covered by a light blanket, in a room full of pictures. After rubbing her eyes, she stood up and wandered out of the room. Everything was dark and only lit by maybe one to two candles in the hallways. Hikari sniffed the air. Vanilla… her favorite scent. Well, her favorite smell from what she could remember.

Her stomach did a flip within itself and made her lean against the wall. "Ugh," she groaned and brought her hand to her head. The last thing she wanted was to get sick. This time, she didn't feel dizzy or warm, she just felt sick. It took her a couple tries to find the bathroom, but when she did, she took a seat beside the toilet with the lavender toilet seat cover.

She held her stomach and set her head against the wall, her stomach never letting up for one second. Throughout the night, whenever she had to, she leaned towards the toilet and regurgitated what little food she ate that day… if she even ate any. In the morning, Ami, or Grandmother as she wanted to be called, fed her a great breakfast. Eggs, bacon, and American French Fries. Hikari wondered how it could be American if it was called 'French' fries. Then she wondered if the fries were healthy to eat for breakfast.

The days past through with Hikari describing her thoughts to Grandmother; told her how she didn't know about the cities or people, told her how she just woke up in a restaurant. She informed her of how she at least found out her name by snooping through the notebook and finding all the pictures, and then the necklace. Words flew out of her mouth, saying how confused she was and how lonesome she felt. Grandmother kept telling her to try to remember to things, that's how to someone can get their memory back.

Hikari thought she was a fruitcake. 

Every morning would be the same, the teenage girl would wake up to run to the nearest wastebasket or bathroom, vomiting into it and feeling horrible. Grandmother told her that it would be good for her if she got out of the house for a walk. And if she were to get lost, she was to call her at the nearest payphone. She gave Hikari a couple of dollar bills and a random amount of change. Hikari looked at it as if it were in a foreign language. Grandmother also gave her a slip of paper with the phone number on it and sent her on her way, telling her to make some new friends.

Now Hikari thought she was a nut. 

How was she going to make friends if she didn't even know where she was? Why did she even accept Grandmother's offer to stay in that house? It was big, full, and confusing. However, it was better than living on a park bench and getting looks from people all day.

Grandmother provided her shelter, food, and a cool place to sleep. She washed her school uniform and gave her some spare clothes that her 'little Sara' used to wear. Whenever Hikari would ask about Sara, the elderly woman would change the subject. Guessing that this Sara was a possible granddaughter who maybe left or passed on, she left the subject alone. 

Today she wore shorts, something fitting for the weather, and a blue T-shirt that had an emblem of a red poppy on the back. It was thin, so it didn't make her overheated. She used a kerchief of red to hold her hair back from her eyes. With a small goodbye to Grandmother, she left the small comfort of the home. 

She walked down the stone path to the road, then walking down that with her arms folded over her stomach. While walking, she examined everything she could; the trees and the way they moved in the gentle breeze, the flowers and the way they were grouped together in the yards. All the way to how the clouds hid the blue sky. 

Her eyes watched the birds soar under the tree branches and over the parked cars. Little kids hopped down the sidewalks, jump roping and singing their rhymes. Boys chased the football around the yards and even into the streets. She somehow wished that she could join in with them, but knew it would look odd if an eighteen-year-old would be playing with little six-year-olds. 

This part of town looked different from the other place she was at weeks ago when she first arrived. It had been nearly two and a half weeks since she had been in this town. Even now the name slips her memory so temporarily that it made her stomp her foot from her forgetfulness. O-something. It started with an O. The city was large and full of things and people. 

Once Grandmother took her on a street with the library on it. She wanted to go there. It had looked so comforting, so welcoming, so beautiful. Hikari then decided to try to find the library of the town. 

Hikari walked the streets of the new town, her mind still foggy of the past, but waiting for the future. The pain in her stomach began to bother her again and it kept her moving. It would hurt her the most when she would stop. Even for the briefest moment. Just as the pain started to catch up to her, she stopped in front of the library. A triumphant smile crossed her lips and she scanned up the trail of steps. They seemed to go on forever.

On each side of the stairs, she saw the path of flowers, red, blue, white, yellow…. At the end of the steps there were two pillars, holding up a roof-like structure that held the library's name. _Olympia Public Library_. So _that's_ what the town was called. She mentally kicked herself and repeated the name aloud, "Olympia… Olympia, Washington."

The building was a large, beautiful building with many flowers around it. She took her time to go up the steps, her legs aching with each move, though she didn't know why. When she finished off the stairs, large doors with tinted windows welcomed her. Setting her hands on the bar of the door, she pushed it gently and a gust of cool air swept across her cheeks.

She stepped in and brought her hands to her face. It was so cool. Hikari dropped her arms to her sides and entered through the second set of doors. The floor she stood on was solid, like some type of stone. It trailed on until the front desk where a large circular office-type area met her eyes. In the middle was a chair with its back facing Hikari. Faint clicks of typing on a keyboard filled the silence. She took only one step before a voice came from the office.

"Can I help you?"

Hikari turned and watched the chair spin around. A healthy looking young man rose to his feet, holding three books and reading another. He was tall and looked strong, but at the same time, he looked caring and sentiment and sweet. His hair was the brightest of blond, a golden color; she couldn't see his eyes, for they were focused on the book. Black was his shirt, long-sleeved and warm--even on a hot day like this. His pants were also black, as were his shoes. Hikari wondered if he ever had a heat stroke. She also wondered if he was a poet; she heard of such poets who dressed in black and didn't say much other than poems and other kinds of depressing things.

"Um, yes," she paused to finger the edge of her shorts and looked down. "I need a book." She didn't really, but why else would she be here?

"Of course you do," he replied, stepping from behind the counter. "What kind?" He walked towards a few bookshelves and put the books away with quick flicks of his wrist.

"A um, book of illnesses?" she held her stomach as she said the words. "Stomach problems."

"Ah, okay," the man nodded, scratching his smooth chin. He turned on his heels and then walked through the isles of books, muttering things to himself. Hikari tried to follow but soon found herself lost within the fiction authors F-J and the nonfiction authors A-E.

The stranger's fingers flew across a few books, dropping some into his arms. When he had an armful of books, he took the last one into his mouth and turned, expecting to see Hikari, but he didn't. He blinked and raised a brow.

Hikari tilted her head at some of the titles of books. She started to reach for a book, but pulled back when she heard his voice again.

"Ma'am?" he murmured with the book in his mouth. The girl jumped and screamed a little bit. He in return jumped and lost hold of the books. They all fell from his arms and onto his foot. Shrieking, the boy released his grip on the book in his mouth and it fell onto the pile of books.

"Oh!" Hikari blushed and fell to her knees to pick them up. "I'm so sorry."

He didn't say anything in return. They soon cleaned up the mess and sat it all on a table. Hikari placed herself on one side and the other sat across.

"What kind of problems have you been having?" he asked without looking up, engrossing himself into another book of his.

"I've just been feeling stomach pains…"

He handed her two books, "Start with those."

She nodded then began reading while the boy held a book to his face as well. It covered his face enough to shield his eyes. After a few minutes, Hikari set down the book with a pale expression. 

"Huh," she said flatly. "Says here that I…" she cleared her throat and folded her arms over her stomach, "that I might be pregnant…"

She watched the teenage boy shift in his seat, but he didn't bring the book down. "Oh, you're uh, married?"

"No…"

"So you have a boyfriend." It was more of a statement than a question.

"Um, no…"

"You're not a prost-"

"No! Sir!" she glared at him and leaned back in her seat. "I wanted to _save_ myself." _I think_. --_ I hope!_ "Sir… I can't really remember much about this happening… And I'm sure I would have remembered!"

"Well," he said from behind the book, "you were either drunk," she was insulted, "or you have amnesia. Which I doubt."

"Well what if I do?" she questioned, "last thing I remember is waking up in a restaurant here in Olympus--"

"Olympia."

"Olympia…" she repeated. "But you see, I don't remember where I came from or why I'm here. I don't know who my parents are, if they're still alive. I don't know if I have any brothers or sisters…."

"What's your name?"

"Yagami Hikari--But I only know that because all the possessions I seemingly have are claimed by a Yagami Hikari. Even my necklace says my name. And there was a photograph of someone who looked like me that was named Hikari…"

"Well," he said, his tone sounding as if he lost interest a few minutes ago. "I still don't think you have amnesia…" He paused and added, "For one who remembers her name can hear their lost, beloved past."

"What are you?" she gave him a look and leaned against the table. "A poet?"

"No, ma'am," he set the book down and folded his hands on the surface of the table. He snapped his head a bit to move his hair out of his eyes and smiled lightly. "I'm the librarian."

Hikari blinked and stared into his eyes. They were a bright blue, gentle and caring. That shade of blue reminded her of the sky… or maybe the ocean. She felt her cheeks turn pink as he lifted her hand in his.

With a soft kiss on her hand, the handsome youth voiced, "I am Takaishi Takeru. A pleasure to meet you, Hikari, was it?"

She nodded faintly. _Somebody who has a name like mine, finally! _"Yes… I…" she lost herself in his eyes. Somehow, they looked familiar.

"So," he stood up from the chair and disappeared behind a shelf of the library. "Babies, eh?"

"I… I don't even know if I am pregnant. Maybe it's just the flu. Maybe I'm just overreacting. Maybe it's just something I've been eating or something." Hikari stood up and followed Takeru. When she turned into the isle, he was gone. Puzzled, she crossed her arms and turned around, "You know you--"

She bumped into him and fell down; he stumbled back a little bit. Hikari glanced up at him and frowned, "You do that a lot."

"Do what?" he asked innocently, taking the three books in his hands and handing them to her.

"You disappear then come behind me and you… you just do that." She stood up and looked at the books. "Baby names? I don't need this--I don't think I'm pregnant."

Takeru chuckled and set his hands on her shoulders, leading her towards the main doors. "Now, the only way to figure out if you are going to be carrying a little one, is to set an appointment with your doctor. I'm trusting you with those books and I'll see you in two weeks."

She stopped and looked up at him. "Two weeks?"

"The books are due then," he said simply and walked back to the circular office. 

_Everyone seems so nice._ "Um, thank you, sir," she called, but she didn't think she heard him. Shrugging lightly, she then opened the door and stepped out of the library.

"Hope you find your memory," he called and turned around just in time to see her leave the second set of doors. His bright blue eyes stared at the empty doors and then slowly drifted away and back to his computer. 

"Honey, you're as pregnant as a mama dog with a litter in her tummy." Grandmother informed Hikari twelve days later after her visit to the library.

Yep… Hikari thought she was insane.

"What?" she sat on the counter of the bathroom, holding her stomach with one hand and eating a sandwich--her lunch-- with the other. "I can't be."

"Kari," she used the shortened term of her name because it was easier. "We've tested you three times after you went to the doctor. Do you want to try for the fourth?"

She shifted on the counter. "No," she said with a mouthful of sandwich. "But this can't be right… I don't remember ever… you know… I don't remember the so-called 'magical' night."

"Don't you remember anything?" Grandmother started to leave the bathroom. Hikari turned to look away. "I'm going to the store… need anything?"

"Food," she grumbled and jumped off the counter and followed Grandmother down the hallway. 

"Honey, I'll get you enough food for you and _five_ babies." She smiled her wrinkly smile, "For those midnight cravings."

Hikari giggled and sent her elderly friend on her way. After she left, the girl sat down on the couch in the front room and lifted up on of the books that she had received from the library. It was the baby name book. She searched through the pages, A through M of girls' names. _Ada, Adaline, Abby._ Those seemed so… plain, so like the names in Washington. She wanted to name her baby something meaningful, yet beautiful, something that would mean what she seems. Or he. She wondered about a boy's name too… 

Though she hated the idea of being pregnant during her early years, she was also happy that it was happening. In her dreams, she always pictured herself with a baby, wrapped in a thin white blanket, full of joy, full of happiness. She sighed and set the book down on the ground, staring up at the ceiling. Her mind began to block out everything, but she just barely heard the knock on the screen door.

She sat up and saw a shadow on the floor in front of the door. "Come in," she said and sat on her knees. A smile formed from her lips as the tall Takeru stepped into the home. This time he wore khaki slacks and a white shirt. He didn't seem like a poet anymore.

"Hi, Miss," he nodded sheepishly, his hands shifting in his pockets.

Hikari smiled again at his shyness and stood up. "What brings you here? How did you know where I was staying?"

"Ami kind of stopped by the library not too long ago… about two days. She told me and a couple others that one of her good friends was going to have a baby." He smirked a little, "I kind of put two and two together and asked if I could stop by sometime. Being Ami, she said yes and told me the facts. Learn the unknown and find your true destiny."

_Only a poet would know exactly what to say._ "Are you sure you're not a poet?" she questioned.

"Last time I checked," he replied, "I was a librarian."

Hikari shook her head and then looked away. "Um, thanks for stopping by…"

"Yeah, I was just curious… how many weeks along are you?"

"About a month…"

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"Yeah…"

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Uh, sure." He said a little louder than he wished to. His hand reached up to nervously scratch his chin and he watched her exit the front room. While waiting, he glanced at the pictures; at the hallways, at the open doors. Then he eyed Hikari coming back in with a cold glass of apple juice.

"Hey, my favorite kind of juice," he grinned and took the glass from her hand. "Thank you, Miss."

"Stop calling me that…" she said after sipping the drink. "Call me Hikari. Or Kari as Grandmother would say."

Takeru slanted his lips into a faint grin and nodded. "All right… Hikari."

"Okay…" she whispered, "Takeru."

And so the days went on. Hikari grew larger around the waist---and hated the fact of it---and wished it would all go away. Grandmother began knitting little socks and a little sweatshirt. She claimed that the baby was going to be May baby, the time when the flowers smelled so rich and the rain was delivered so finely. Hikari smiled and dreamed of taking her baby out for a walk in midst of the flowers.

Takeru made his visits more frequent, nearly every day. He brought books from the library. Some where fiction stories that Hikari always liked. Others were more baby books, instructing her of how to 'tell' when the baby is ready to be born. He always sat down beside Hikari and her growing belly, ready with a book of Shakespeare to read. 

Every night he would appear by the door with a book in his hand. They would sit out on the porch on warm nights, reading by candlelight, and indoors, wrapped in blankets on the chilly nights. Takeru would read to her until her eyes shut and her head rested on his shoulder. Then he would close the book, stand up, and tuck Hikari into bed, leaving her a red rose beside her every other day. Hikari collected these roses and placed them in a vase on the windowsill. 

By the time the frigid month of December came, Hikari and Takeru had finished _Hamlet _and _Romeo and Juliet_, plus a couple of other stories written by the wonderful Shakespeare. Hikari nearly begged him to read _Romeo and Juliet_ again someday. He told her that when her beautiful child is born, he will. 

Snow covered the ground and the temperature was below freezing. But Takeru still came walking up that path to Grandmother's door. He always knocked three times and waited for Hikari's voice to greet him. Even when he would catch cold, he came over and sat across the room to read to the girl. She was flattered by how much he cared and how persistent he was. 

Christmas was approaching in less than a week and Takeru brought her little gifts, recited little poems, and then tried to convince her that he really wasn't a poet. She laughed with his actions and Grandmother blessed him every time he made her smile. He began to show up a little earlier, coming in time for dinner and telling Hikari what to eat and what not to eat.

"Your baby has to be eating the right food, you know," he said on Christmas Eve, when Hikari was munching down on the cookies.

"Well I have to eat what I want too," she mentioned and bit into another cookie in front of his face. He scrunched his nose at her and she giggled. Before she could take another bite of the cookie, Takeru snatched it from her fingers and pushed it into his mouth. She began whining and complaining to Grandmother on how unfair he was beginning to be. He just shrugged and told her to stop acting like the baby she was going to be giving.

When midnight was drawing near, Hikari set herself on the couch and lifted a Shakespeare book into her hands and opened it to her most recent spot. She began reading aloud when Takeru stepped into the room with his hands in his pockets. Wrapped within blankets, she read in a gentle voice, just like he did to her every night. He sat down beside Hikari and listened to her sweet voice. Instead of her falling asleep first, Takeru did. His eyes closed and he drifted into a slumber while Hikari still read the pages. Finally, she set down the book and looked at the blonde.

"Merry Christmas, Takeru," she smiled lightly and took a rose out of the vase. Setting the red rose beside the kind youth, she reached up to turn the lamp off and then curled onto the couch beside Takeru. Both slept in the comfort of Grandmother's home, caught between blankets and dreams. Neither of them even coming over the thought of a relationship other than friendship. Neither of them knowing the past of Yagami Hikari.

Believe me… this is NOT the end. (Even though I'm really, REALLY bad at endings, this would have been the most pointless ending ever….) There's a second part to this story that includes the following: Hikari's home in Odaiba and all her friends and family; the birth of Hikari's baby (hmm… boy or girl?), a little 'date' at Takeru's. Also the question that Takeru asks Hikari, the scene where she recovers her memory, and her trip back home. 

Sounds rather… large doesn't it? I was going to rewrite this story… but then I ran out of time and the deadline of the contest is April 8th… So I had to get it out. I did redo a few things… other than that, it's still written pretty loosely. Mmkay now… Again, this was for _I Am Canadian_'s contest… At least the first half of it. Does it sound okay? 'Cause I'm having my doubts… ~.~ 


End file.
